Charneca Dive Site, Portugal

Diving Overview for Charneca

Charneca has a maximum diving depth of around 15m / 50ft and is suitable for all divers. The average visibility is 10-20 metres and access to the dive site is by boat.

More Information

"Charneca" was a tugboat owned by Lisnave.

She was sailing from Lisbon to give assistance to a cargo ship, but did not make it and decided to try to find harbour in Leixões where she arrived with many technical problems in the middle of a large and violent sea storm. The tug was throwing against the harbour water break by the strength of the waves, where her hull was holed and she sank on February 16th, 1986.

Only one member of her crew survived. They were 4.

The wreck lays in 14m of water on a sandy bottom. She is straight, pointing south, with her wheel house completely broken, reminding us of the fury of the sea that day.

Her portside is slightly silted and in her midships, on her starboard side, divers can find the hole in the hull caused by the impact against the water break.

There are many lines and cables loose inside the wreck, so care must be observed on entering. Outside the wreck, it's usual to see the existence of fishing lines and nets, which are a danger to divers due to bad visibility on the site.

Due to her location, divers must also be aware of maritime traffic.

Source: www.mergulhomania.com
(Reproduced with permission of the author)

Just at the end of Quebra Mar (The wreck is S of the submerged breakwater reef).

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